Damascus Nights

Reading Group Discussion Points What is the significance of Salim losing his voice? How does it shape the story, and why is it so important for Salim to get his voice back? Is the apparition who brings him the news a metaphor? If so, what?Who is the narrator inDamascus Nights? What is his role in the story?InDamascus Nights, Schami mingles reality and fairy tale: Medhi, the geographer, tells a fable about a farmer who is so poor he sells his voice to a wizard for gold, while Tuma, the immigrant, tells a story about New York skyscrapers and the impossibility of haggling in American stores. Why has Schami chosen to include both realism and fables? How do the ancient and the modern illuminate each other in his book?Tuma, the immigrant, tells the true story of his experience in America, and then tells a story he has made up. Schami titles the chapter: "How one person's true story was not believed, whereas his most blatant lie was." Why is it that the listeners are not able to distinguish the truth from what is made up? What light does Schami shed on the notion of truth vs. fiction? On the idea of perception?Faris, the minister, tells a story about a king who will not listen, and who finally has to hear the truth from his grave. Later, Salim remembers a story about a man who is cursed with two mouths and one small ear. He talks so much that everyone stops listening. When the man begs to have one mouth and two ears, his wish is granted, but only on the condition he "repeat every call and every sentence.-" In essence, become an echo. What does Schami imply about words and their worth? What is the significance of listening? What role does listening play inDamascus Nights?Damascus Nightsis about a man who loses his voice. Medhi, the geographer, tells the tale of a poor farmer who gives away his voice for gold. Tuma, the immigrant, relates how he lost his voice while living in America. Discuss how losing a voice means something different in each story? What significance does the voice have inDamascus Nights?The seventh story is the only one inDamascus Nightsnarrated by a woman -- Fatma. Long ago, her mother advised her to tell her stories to her husband while he was still in love, but Fatma couldn't bring herself to tell her husband any of her stories. In fact, she only grew quieter. Why do you think Fatma was silent for so many years? Is there any significance to the fact that the last storyteller -- the one who breaks Salim's spell -- is a woman? If so, what? Does this story shed light on the role of women in the Middle East?Musa, the barber, tells a story of a king who masters all the lies in the world, but misses the one truth that is right in front of his nose. What fundamental human truth is contained in this story? What does Schami suggest about the relationship between truth and lying? Compare this story to the one Tuma, the immigrant, made up.Fatma's mother, Leila, enters the cave and encounters the wretched monster. Unlike everyone else, she does not turn to stone. Why doesn't Fatma's mother turn to stone? What does this story reveal about fear and fearlessness? About ignorance and knowledge?In addition to Salim's famous storytelling abilities, he is also known for his ability to restore flight to fallen swallows. How is this gift similar to his gift for telling stories? And why do you think Schami endsDamascus Nightswith Salim helping another fallen swallow fly?Do you believe Salim actually lost his voice, or was he pretending, like the boy suggests at the end of the book? Does it matter to the story if he was telling the truth or not? In any case, what do you think cured Salim? And why did it cure him?What common themes tie the stories inDamascus Nightstogether?In what way isDamascus Nightsa contemporarSchami, Rafik is the author of 'Damascus Nights' with ISBN 9780684802657 and ISBN 0684802651.